Harkey Humbled by Career

From a million-dollar pitcher to a dime-store patch repair kit, Mike Harkey has seen his market value dip faster and steeper than Orange County real estate the last two years.

Much of it, by his own admission, was Harkey’s doing.

Before the 1994 season, free agent Harkey “had a chance to come home and make a lot of money. Instead, I went to Colorado, for less money, and I had a bad year. Who can figure that one out?”

Harkey turned down a million-dollar offer to pitch for the Angels in 1994, a few gopher balls to the south of where he pitched for Cal State Fullerton in the mid-1980s. A million dollars? From the mighty skinflints of Anaheim? For a pitcher coming off a 10-10 season with a 5.26 earned-run average?

“I made a big mistake,” Harkey says.

A $775,000 mistake.

Harkey chose Colorado over the Angels for some of the right reasons.

“I wanted to stay in the National League,” he says.

“Joe Girardi, who was my catcher with the Cubs, was one of the catchers over there.

“I had a lot of old friends on the Rockies.”

Add them up and Harkey “made a decision based on whether I’d be comfortable or not.”

Since then, Harkey has learned that comfort will take a pitcher only so far; eventually, his fastball had better kick in. With the Rockies, Harkey lost almost everything--six of seven decisions, his spot in the starting rotation, eventually his spot on the major league roster.

By April 1995, he was waking up before home games in Oakland. Comfort was no longer an option. Getting paid became the priority, even if the contract now called for a piddling $225,000.

Harkey made a dozen starts for the A’s. He won four of them, lost six, kept his ERA under 7.00, averaged a home run an outing--and wondered why he was out of a job by July 12.

“It wasn’t me,” Harkey continues to believe. “I was third on the staff in wins. They didn’t get rid of me because of the way I was pitching. It was just . . . business.”

It was business, and it was physiology. As soon as Cuban missile silo Ariel Prieto, the fifth player selected in the 1995 draft, agreed to terms with the A’s, Harkey was a short-timer. Prieto has an arm the sagging Athletics couldn’t wait to exploit. Harkey has an arm too many doctors have explored. Prieto or Harkey--Oakland General Manager Sandy Alderson must have deliberated for seconds. One arm you save, the other you waive, simple as that.

Harkey was out of work a week. For that, he can thank the sore arms of Shawn Boskie and Mike Bielecki and the even temper of Bill Bavasi. Snubbed at $1 million, Bavasi opted not to let pride stand in the way of getting his pitching rotation through the month, especially at these prices. So the Angels made a claim on Harkey on July 19, pitched him once on July 21 and pitched him again on July 26--against the most formidable lineup in baseball.

After six innings Wednesday, Harkey and the Angels led Dennis Martinez and the Cleveland Indians, 5-3, on their way to a season-series-clinching 6-3 triumph.

Harkey did nothing extraordinary in his six-plus innings, but he did nothing career-threatening, either. He gave up eight hits, walked two, had at least two runners on base in the second, third, fourth and sixth innings and served up two home runs.

But both Paul Sorrento and Jim Thome struck when the bases were empty. The damage was measurable, but it was minimal. And when Chili Davis struck for the Angels with the bases full, Harkey was set up for his first winning contribution to a big league pennant race.

“This feels kind of strange,” Harkey said. “I’ve played for the Cubs, the Rockies and Oakland. I’ve never been in first place before. I don’t know how it feels.”

Never close to a World Series, Harkey even missed out on the glory at Fullerton, pitching for Augie Garrido between NCAA championships, from 1985 to 1987. He was a high school senior when the Titans won the title in 1984 and an interested TV viewer in Oakland when they recaptured it two months ago.

“They’ve kind of been my inspiration,” Harkey said. “Coming back to Southern California and playing for a contender, it feels like I’m pitching at Cal State Fullerton all over again.

“I saw Augie Garrido the other day and told him congratulations. It’s been a good year for Titans. It sure would be nice if I could make it a double.”

First things first, though. For Harkey, it would be nice to make it to August. If even 1% of the going trade rumors can be believed, Harkey is here merely keeping a chair warm for Jim Abbott, David Cone, Ken Hill or wherever the Angels’ Dial-Some-Pennant-Insurance spinner stops.

Harkey’s a realist. “For me, the thought is to, basically, go out and keep them from doing something,” he said. “They never made me any guarantee, but for the time being, they’re going to give me the ball. I have make them keep the ball in my hand.”

Harkey the heralded Angel flings? Probably not in our lifetime. But at this stage, Harkey couldn’t care. He can live with less on the marquee, having learned to live with less on the bi-monthly pay stub.

How about Harkey the still-employed Angel?

Ask him in October and Harkey will most likely tell you, yeah, there is a certain ring to it.